Chris Weidman
With the recent failed weight cut of Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson fresh on everyone’s minds, it was a bit of a startling revelation when undefeated UFC middleweight Chris Weidman (7-0) talked about weighing 216.8-lbs when he received the call to face Demian Maia this Saturday at UFC on FOX 2.
Weidman is stepping in as a late replacement for Michael Bisping at the upcoming Chicago card as ‘The Count’ moves up to face Chael Sonnen in a number one contender bout after Mark Munoz withdrew from the card due to injury.
Weidman received the news just last week, having been announced as Maia’s new opponent on January 17 leaving the New York fighter just eleven days to prepare.
So, as stated, it was quite a shock when Weidman told “The MMA Show with Mauro Renallo” that he was coming in at 216.8 lbs, which is heavier than he usually weighs.
“I was 216.8 when I got the call. Usually I’m around 210ish, 208. I was a little heavier than normal since it’s short notice. I don’t prefer to cut this much weight but given the opportunity I’ve done worse. I’m not worried about making the weight. I will make the weight. It’s part of the sport. I welcome the test, the grind of making the weight. It’s going to make me a tougher person, not just for this fight but just in general. Just experiences with taking fights on short notice and overcoming the odds and difficulties of doing it is just good for a fighter to have under his belt.”
If Weidman can make this weight cut, it will be interesting to see the type of effect it has on his body, and whether or not he can actually make the 185-lbs limit on Friday. I’m not sure what Dana White would do if he missed weight badly, since we’ve already seen what happened to Johnson.
Check out the rest of the podcast by hitting play above, which also includes interviews with the head trainer of Roufusport, Duke Roufus, UFC bantamweight Michael McDonald, and Gil Martinez who was the former boxing coach Xtreme Couture.
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